Metal Made Flesh
by Shax
Summary: A villain from series one is resurrected, weaker but fueled by venegence.


METAL MADE FLESH 

Series 2 - The Three Tests   
Episode 8 

[Visit Shax's Virtual Den][1]   
[E-mail the author][2]

PROLOGUE: 

Blink.. blink.. 

He sat up, and turned his head slowly. He was in some kind of temple or church. The walls were rock. The change was sudden.. he decided that it would be best to check for any signs of life. He thought it strange that his thoughts had slowed down considerably, but he was able to think more deeply about things.. and to become distracted by the smallest things. "Movement scanners activate." he said. he stared hard at a wall. Seconds later, a frown spread across his face. "Movement scanners activate. MOVEMENT SCANNERS ACTIVATE." he became frustrated, and banged his head hard. The pain threw him off the bed. There was a long pause. "What the ^$%(%?" he asked, picking himself up. He pinched his arm. More pain. "What has happened to me?" he asked, looking himself over. Was this a nightmare? No, robots don't have nightmares. There was a terrified scream, as the evil Cyber Sonic realised that he was covered in flesh and skin. 

CHAPTER ONE: 

"Doctor Robotnik, I would like to announce that the prototype is complete." Packbell boasted. "Ah.. excellent!" replied Robotnik. "This is a fine day.. where is it?" Genesis simply stared down the hall. He knew what Packbell had completed. It was the first prototype for the line of E-101 robots. He wondered briefly if he was going to be replaced, being an E-100. Surely enough, there were footsteps in the hall, and a robot appeared. It was much larger than an E-100. "Greetings Doctor Robotnik." it murmured. "Eh?" asked Robotnik. "Oh good! It can speak!" "Yes." replied Packbell. "It has speech capabilities, and much better weaponry. Its lasers have much better range, and it is overall a much better warrior. The E-100s were good, but this is top-of-the line." "How many of these can you produce within the week?" asked Robotnik. "They are already being mass-produced." replied Packbell. "There should be an army of one hundred by the end of the week." "Excellent!" replied Robotnik, twiddling his fingers. "I shall wish to send an attack party to Station Square and the Knothole Freedom Fighters next Tuesday." 

"Ah, you are awake!" came a voice. Cyber looked up. "Who are you?" he demanded. A short human appeared from the shadows. "I am known as the Soul Man." he replied. Cyber stared at him coldly. "I use magic to transport one's soul between bod...." He didn't finish his sentence before the now alive Cyber Sonic threw himself at him, and held the man by the throat. Soul Man let out a choke, and tried to wrestle the attacker off him. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?" asked Cyber slowly, digging into Soul Man's throat with each word. "I... I... I saved your soul!" Soul Man choked out. "What the hell is that supposed to mean..." Cyber asked, weakening his grip a little. "Your torso was terribly damaged!" Soul Man replied. "Look!" he pointed across the room. Cyber looked in the direction for a few seconds, then dropped the man on the floor with a thunk. He walked over.. there was a brown heap of junk lying on a table. It took a while for Cyber to recognise it as being.. himself. His robot self. "What... happened..?" he asked. He tenderly touched the metal arm, and when he pulled away, his finger had a thick layer of rust on it. He brushed it off, and looked at Soul Man, who was still on the floor, shocked. "Damaged beyond repair." he replied. "You must have fallen off a cliff.. I found you at the bottom of the river, half covered with sand! You were rusted and smashed.. but your soul still had a slight spark left in it. I found you, picked a body that fit you, and transported your soul to..." "Is this permanent?" asked Cyber. "Well.. no, but.." Cyber Sonic bolted across the room, and grabbed him by the throat again. This time, he picked Soul Man up by the neck, his legs flailing around. "I have no intention of remaining organic.." the former robot threatened. "Repair me immediately." "It.... It's not that simple!" Soul Man choked. "You COULD return to your robot body by screaming 'Abort' thrice, but the body has been destroyed! It is useless... it... returning to it would kill you!" "YOU OLD FOOL!" screamed Cyber, throwing the man to the ground. "WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO AS AN ORGANISM??" He kicked Soul Man. "P..please!" the man pleaded. "AS A ROBOT, I WAS INVINCIBLE!!" Cyber screamed. "NOW A SIMPLE STAB COULD KILL ME!" He was about to inflict more harm apon the writhing, trembling Soul Man, but he stopped. "Although.." he mumbled. "This form is better than nothing... perhaps it will even allow me to acheive the revenge I seek.... yes.. I can use this to my advantage." He turned and left the building. "I shall keep you alive!" he shouted back. "To show my gratitude, if I only have the slightest amount. DEATH TO SONIC AND MECHA!" "Sonic and Mecha..." Soul Man muttered. Good greif... what have I done?" 

Robotnik sat in his chair, looking quite nervous. "Is anything the problem, sir?" Packbell asked. Robotnik looked up at the android. "Packbell, the E-101 droids do have the power to eliminate the Freedom Fighters, do they not?" Packbell nodded. "The Sky Sanctuary project proved successful, we almost completely wiped out Knothole, only the Freedom Fighters remain, and they are very disadvantaged. They should be rather nomadic, possibly moving villages.. we can strike, and with a little luck we can.." "I WANT RESULTS!" Robotnik screamed hoarsely. "I don't care for luck, WE HAVE NO LUCK! I want your WORD, Packbell, that we can succeed this time." "Well, I.. I can't do that, sir!" replied Packbell, caught off-guard. "There are just too many variables, all I can say is that we have very high chances on our side.." "We cannot go forever, Packbell." Robotnik said, a little calmer, standing up and pacing. "Robotropolis is severely in the red zone, and we need to get the Freedom Fighters out of the way, so we can move on to Station Square. If we dominate another city, we will have the required resources and funding to make it through to the end of the year! To bring Robotropolis through to a new millenium.." "Is anything wrong, sire?" Packbell asked, calmly. "Why should Robotropolis be in the red? Are we in debt to someone?" Robotnik looked at the android for a second, as if making a decision whether or not to tell him something. He apparently decided not to. "A third of my army was wiped out a week ago, Packbell." he said. "So was my main control tower. I have barely enough resources to provide you to produce the E-101 army! All I can say is that we must either eliminate or get around the Freedom Fighter threat before the end of this month, or we might both be destroyed along with our work. Dismissed, Packbell." "But sir! We have gone on this long.." "DISMISSED, Packbell. You have work to do." 

Sally stood and looked at a giant map. Sonic looked on with her, holding the other side so that the strong wind wouldn't blow away one of their last directional aides. "I say we continue on for three or four miles." Sally suggested. "There is a village directly north from here, Stringybark, and we could stay there for a while and gather supplies... from there we could go east another few miles, and that should take us close to Casino City and Station Square, where we could purchase computer equipment with what little money we have, and forge New Knothole nearby." Sonic nodded. "Are there any Freedom Fighters in the cities?" he asked. "I've heard of the Station Square Freedom Fighters..." Sally replied "But I'm not sure about Casino City.. or Twinkle Park, or whatever they call it now. I doubt they have had much experience with Robotnik, though, after all, they are ten miles all up from Robotropolis." Sonic nodded in agreeance, and looked around at the large group of villagers in the bushes around them, each carrying knapsacks and some of them sobbing. "Poor guys." Sonic muttered. "They lost their homes in Mobitropolis, now they've lost Knothole." Sally sighed. "Blasted Robotnik won't be satisfied until they're all dead and covered with metal." she muttered. "One day we'll march in and robotize HIM. Then he wouldn't be so happy." "He couldn't go on much longer, anyway." Sonic assured her. "Sky Sanctuary really was a stupid idea. If anything, it did as much damage to him as it did to us. Wiped out his army AND his main control tower." The thought of Robotnik and Mecha having the same conversation in the middle of a forest with a map gave Sonic a little pleasure. "Well, let's get going." he said. Sally nodded, put the map away, and shouted to the villagers. "WE'RE GOING TO DEPART, NOW." she yelled. "Gather your things and stay together. With food, water, sleep and rest stops, we should expect to be in Stringybark by this time next week." 

The next day... 

Cyber stumbled along, trying to get used to his new, organic body. He reached some kind of junkyard.. probably belonging to Robotropolis. There were all sorts of discarded things laying around the place. "I had better mind the SWAT-bots." Cyber mumbled to himself. "They won't recognise me as Cyber Sonic." The ex-robot looked down at his body. His fur was as black as pitch, his quills were a mess, and he had two very worn-out thongs on his feet, probably the only thing Soul Man could give him as a result of his obvious poverty. His ponderings were interrupted by a very robotic "STATE YOUR NAME AND BUSINESS HERE." he spun around, and saw a large robot standing before him. "What th... you're not a SWAT-bot!" he announced with alarm. He looked at the chest of the robot.. "E-101" was displayed. "E-101, eh?" Cyber asked. "You replaced the SWAT-bots? About time Robotnik did away with those trashy droids." He raised his arm and aimed at the robot's face. Then stopped. "Oh.. right. No weapons." he muttered. "This body really sucks." In reply, the E-101 raised it's own weapon. Cyber spun around and ran, a shower of bullets just missing him. He stumbled, and fell face-first into the mud. "Ah, &*!@ it." he muttered. Raising his head, he saw a pole sticking out of the pile of junk in front of him. Further inspection revealed it to be an old, rusted, lumberjack's axe. He picked himself up, and lifted the heavy axe over his head. "Heeere, robot.." he called. The shadow of the robot, laser rifle on the ready, appeared on a nearby tree. With a sudden burst of adrenalin, Cyber swung the axe around and right into the side of the E-101's metallic hull. The robot, caught by surprise, stumbled and fell. Cyber dug the axe out, and swung it again, hitting the robot a second time while it struggled to get up. Again, he raised the weapon and slammed it down, cutting into the metal.. again and again and again and again, hacking furiously into the droid until there was no movement except a few sparking wires. Only then did Cyber discard the axe, panting frantically. "What a rush!" he exclaimed. "This is pitiful.. I can't walk around with an axe.. the most fear that would acheive would be people mistaking me for the Grim Reaper." he muttered, looking down at his black fur and quills. Only then did he spot something at his feet, amongst the junk. Three large tins of black spraypaint, one of them half empty and the others nearly full. He looked around at the robot behind him, still intact except for the few gaping axe wounds. "I wonder if one who is metal made flesh could go on to be metal AND flesh.." he wondered, out loud. "The combination of animal senses and robot protection and weaponry could make me quite deadly..." 

Packbell worked on Mecha's circuits, as Mecha looked out the window to the destroyed tower, pondering. "Try moving your left leg." Packbell said. Mecha moved his left leg out, around, and back in again. "All is well." he said. "You're lucky I found you." Packbell announced, getting back to work. "You'd collapsed just outside the city, your entire internal mainframe was waterlogged. Mecha nodded. "I was affected in some way by the third phase of Sky Sanctuary." he said. "I didn't think it did any more than the windy storm it produced in the tests. It produced a hurricane, and I was powerless to escape." Packbell was busy screwing parts back into Mecha's mainframe. "I suppose you have noticed what the machine did to the main tower." Mecha nodded. "I have noticed... that was done by Sky Sanctuary?" "Yes." replied Packbell. "Crashed straight into it. The echidna took it back to his island, and Robotnik warned me never to think of using it again. Like it was even my idea in the first place.. I was the one AGAINST the whole plan. Well, can't say I didn't warn him." The android got back to fixing Mecha up. "He's been so uptight lately. I'm sure something is on his mind." "The Freedom Fighters." Mecha stated. Packbell shook his head. "No, bigger than that. He's struggled with the Freedom Fighters since and long before my creation, and I have never seen him this edgy about them. He's winning.. Knothole has been destroyed, along with all the Freedom Fighters' defence. He's never been this close to success, but he's still anxious about something. It is strange, because I have never known Robotnik to fear anything lower than him, such as the Freedom Fighters. And there is no greater power than he, so why should he worry?" Mecha looked down at his busy repairer. "I have heard him discussing matters with somebody he referred to quite frequently as 'sir'. Perhaps there is a higher power." Packbell stopped what he was doing. "I suppose it is possible.." he mumbled. "Why? When was this event you speak of?" "Recently." came the reply. "The date and time.. they are hazy, the files were damaged in the rain. I can, however, recall distinctly Ivo Robotnik speaking to somebody on the speaker phone. He was irritable and impatient, and Robotnik referred to him constantly as 'sir'." Packbell frowned. "We may have stumbled apon something, Mecha." he said, going back to work. 

Clump.. clump... Cyber's steel boots trampled the ground underneath him. His steel armour was set so low, however, that his legs were hard to see. It was forged in such a way that he could still walk with minimum encumberance, however. The upper half of him resembled the E-101 robot that he had formed his armour from. His helmet was short and flat like the E-101's head, and a headlight he placed in the centre made it look like he had three eyes. He carried a large weapon, and his entire outfit was painted black from the paint he found. Jet black, like his dark lifeless fur and quills, and like his blackened heart. His artificial soul knew nothing other than revenge for two individuals.. a hedgehog named Sonic and a robot named Mecha Sonic. Both were simultaniously responsible for the downfall of his original self, and the rise of this less-than-efficiant organic body. For, unlike Mecha, Cyber Sonic never craved life. He saw life as a virus - a disease, threatening the existance of robotkind. This was an opinion much like the opinion of Dr. Robotnik, the mad genius who designed him. Cyber, with a heart filled with hate, turned to face Robotropolis. It would be difficult if not impossible to enter the deep catacombs of the city in search of his robotic nemesis, while in his current form. It would have been easy for his robot body. He turned to face the Great Forest. Sonic the Hedgehog was a difficult target, even for his robot self. He would also be borderline impossible to catch. Re-entering Robotropolis, Cyber tried to think of a plan. He ducked into the shadows, sensing danger. A figure appeared in the streets.. the shadow was tall.. ears like pointed horns on its head, and fangs in it's tooth-filled mouth. It was chanting something, Cyber could not decipher what it was, until the figure, small compared to it's shadow, appeared in the clearing: 

"I am guarding this city!   
From intruders strong or weak!   
They will soon discover that   
I'm a mega mega macho bat!   
Sound off!   
One two!   
Sound off!   
One two!   
Sound off!   
One, two, three... um.. five, six... one... 

As the baffled creature stopped to think, Cyber raised an eyebrow. Guarding the city? Robotnik certainly was sinking low. Although, perhaps this creature, this bat, did have some important use. Robotnik was intelligent, he would not hire somebody completely useless. A thought suddenly entered Cyber's head... whenever there was an affair to be dealt with outside Robotropolis, Robotnik would always send Mecha, his top assassin robot, outside the city. Cyber stepped out of the shadows slowly. "Hey, you." The bat, startled, turned around. "YEAH?" Cyber lifted his arm, and made a 'come hither' motion with his finger. "Come over here." Eyeing the stranger warily, the bat began to step foward. However, he immediately sprung backward. "AHA! Nope! Nuh-uh!" he shouted. "What's wrong?" asked Cyber. "I'm not doing what you tell me to do! I follow orders from NOBODY but Robotnik! I'm completely refusing to follow anything you tell me." He grinned widely, proud of his intelligent reasoning. Cyber sighed a little. "Hey, you." he shouted again. "YEAH?" the bat shouted back. "DON'T come over here." Cyber replied. "Ok." the bat said. "HEY! No, wait.." he frowned and thought about the situation, then began to giggle. "I'm smarter than you!" he said. "You want me to stay away? That's exactly what I'm NOT going to do!" The bat promptly walked over to Cyber with long strides. "HAH! FOILED AGAIN, you pathetic..." The bat stopped talking when he saw the evil grin on the sliver of a mouth that showed underneath Cyber's helmet, and when he felt the icy grip of a metal glove on the back of his neck. "Aaahh... crap." 

*** 

"Good evening, sir, a very nice day, is it..."   
"Skip it, Robotnik. I care nothing of how nice the day is. Your foolish sucking-up suggests to me that you still do not have the money."   
"The deal was for the end of the month.. I assure you I will follow through with my promise."   
"YOU HAD BETTER. The empire is waaaaatchiiing yoooouuu."   
[click] 

CHAPTER TWO: 

A shadow passed through the bushes, as the Freedom Fighters moved their group through the forest. The figure checked a small panel on his arm. "Good thing I recovered this heat sensor from Robotropolis." he mumbled. "I'm becoming more efficient by the day.." He looked through his dark visor beyond the trees. There was the hedgehog, clear as day, actually walking for once instead of the speedy running he was so known for. Yes, the dark figure recognised him, alright. The hedgehog that he could not defeat. Well, now he was back. He glanced back down at his armour.. his black, gleaming metal which made him resemble an E-100. He appeared quite intimidating, but he knew that that wasn't enough on its own to capture the hedgehog. His gaze shifted to somebody else.. a squirrel. Sonic was talking to her, she was smiling despite her obvious meloncholy. The figure in the shadows wondered if the hedgehog would go out of his way to save her if she were in trouble.. He needed little convincing. Stealthily wandering through the bushes, the figure approached an appropriate attack target. He would take the squirrel alive, then the three - he, the squirrel and his other hostage - would retreat to an approprite refuge.. and make sure that both Sonic and Mecha knew exactly where to look. They would not recieve a friendly welcome.. Cyber would make SURE of that. 

"So, Sal, wanna play eye-spy or something?" asked Sonic. Sally looked around. "Eye spy something beginning with 'T'" Sonic chuckled. "Aw c'mon, Sal! TREE!" Sally giggled. "Yeah, well there ain't much else to spy in this place." Sonic immediately put a hand in front of her chest, halting her movement. He stared straight ahead, into the bushes. "Eye spy something beginning with 'R', and I'll give you a clue - the rest of the word is 'obot'" Sally squinted.. she failed to see anything until the two tell-tale points of green light appeared. And E-100 stepped out of the bushes. "Whoa, that thing is HUGE!" Sally exclaimed. "HALT." the robot commanded. "And it can talk!" Sonic added. "I think Robotnik's upgraded those things!" He stared at the chest of the approaching robot. "E-101" he read. "Oh, no WONDER! He HAS upgraded them!" It wasn't long before the points of light increased in number. "Sonic!" Sally yelled. "We've gotta get out of here! We have no weapons, hey'll catch us for SURE!" Sonic nodded, and turned to yell at the rest of the Freedom Fighters. "FREEDOM FIGHTERS, RUN! ROBOT ATTACK!" he screamed. There was the sound of aleted yells, as the villagers all ran in different directions. "TRY TO STAY TOGETHER!" Sonic screamed, turning to face the robot. "Gotta juice!" he said, turning into a spin-dash attack. He slammed into the front of the robot, and used the rebound to run away. Sally ran after him, as the lead robot stumbled under the attack. Sonic looked back occasionally to see if she was still running, and he was careful not to run too fast so as to lose her. An E-101 burst out of the bushes in front of her. She was about to scream for help, but something blasted the robot away, put a hand around her mouth and dragged her into the bushes. 

There was a rather rocky hill beside the path, and the two went rolling down right to the bottom, ever so frequently striking a painful rock. The figure lost its grip eventually, making the decline less painful. The figure hit the bottom first, followed by Sally. Sally got up to run, but something grabbed her feet tightly, and she fell face first into the mud. The figure walked over and grabbed her left arm. "Get up." he commanded. Sally did so with great difficulty. She was bleeding in a few places, and brown mud dripped all over her fur. "Who.. are you?" she asked. "Don't talk loudly." the figure commanded, tugging her to walk with him. "Cyber Sonic." he replied. "Cyber Sonic?" Sally gasped. "You were the robot Robotnik created to replace Mecha!" Cyber laughed. "Indeed. And if my memory does not fail me, you are Sally, leader of the Freedom Fighters of Knothole village." "But Sonic said he destroyed you!" In reply, Cyber used his free hand to remove the helmet that hid his face. He looked back at her with a grinning, black spiked, LIVING hedgehog head. "I have been given a new lease on life!" he replied, replacing the helmet. "A second chance! I am metal made flesh." 

The two walked for a long time. Sally used the arm that wasn't captured to wipe the caked mud off her face. She looked at her captor. He had saved her from the E-101, but he seemed like he was no good guy. Him shooting the robot, and having his own plans, probably meant he didn't work for Robotnik any more, either. "So, Cyber Sonic." Sally ventured. "What are you going to call yourself, now?" Cyber frowned back at her. "What do you mean, squirrel?" "I mean, you're not Cyber any more, and you're definately not Sonic.." Sally replied. "That is true.." Cyber replied. "But if you know what is good for you, you will refer to me as 'Sir'." "You won't get away with this, you know." Sally said. "Oh?" asked Cyber. "Yeah, you think my Freedom Fighters are just going to let you take me?" "Well, that IS kind of the IDEA." Cyber replied. "I'm tired of your talking, please stop." "You can't command me, Cyber." Sally informed him. "Shut up." Cyber hissed. "Where are you taking me, anyway?" At this, Cyber released his grip and turned to her. "WHEN I TELL YOU TO SHUT UP, YOU WILL SHUT UP." he commanded. "And that is the end of it. I have ZERO tolerance for you and your pitiful whining." At this statement, Cyber seemed to stop and think about what he said. "We're here." he stated, at last. They had reached a large cave. Cyber picked something off the bottom of the cave.. a length of rope. "Sit down in the corner." Cyber commanded. "Next to him." Sally looked at where he pointed. Another figure sat there, staring at her. She couldn't see much of him in the darkness of the cave, except for two red eyes. "SIT." Cyber yelled at her. She hesitantly went over and sat next to the figure. Cyber brought the rope over, and wound it around and around her body, tying it tightly at the end. "I'll be back." her captor said. "Don't go away." Cyber walked outside the cave, and soon there was silence. Sally sighed. "Hello." came a voice. She turned to the figure beside her. "Hi.. did Cyber catch you, too?" "Yep!" the figure replied. "It was quite a struggle, but he eventually got close enough to catch me." Sally looked around. "I hate to admit it, but I'm scared." "Heya, Scared! I'm Vlad!" came the reply. "Huh? You're.. weird." Her eyes began to adjust to the light. "Do I know you?" she asked. Vlad shook his head frantically. "NO! Nope, never met me! Noo.. impossible, totally impossible, I don't know you, you don't know me, we're NOT a happy family, nope, nuh-uh, not on you're life." Sally raised and eyebrow and sighed again. "Great, stuck in a cave with a fruit loop." 

Mecha Sonic entered Robotnik's office. "You called for me, sir?" he asked. "Yes Mecha, I did." came the reply from Robotnik. "You may have noticed that our arsenal has been less than complete lately." "Whom are you referring to?" Mecha inquired. "Vlad." Robotnik replied. "Oh, him." Mecha snorted. "No doubt the lazy organism is lounging around, ignoring his duties." "You'd think so." Robotnik muttered. "But we found another dead E-101 today." "Stripped of it's hull like the other?" Mecha asked. "No, it just had a message on it's chest in black spraypaint." Robotnik replied. "It says 'I have your bat in the rocky mountain caves, come and get him'." Mecha's eyes dimmed. "A puzzling message." he commented. "Would you be able to travel to the mountain caves and find out what kind of joke this is?" Robotnik asked. "I can't afford to lose yet ANOTHER of my troops, especially one so highly commended." "Highly commended.." Mecha repeated. "Uh, yes sir, I shall do my best. The bat will be returned by sundown." With a salute, the robot left. 

Sonic looked around cautiosly. The Freedom Fighters were being reorganized. They had been scattered all over the forest, it took ages to find them all, especially those who had run a quarter mile and gotten lost. "Roll call!" the hedgehog shouted. He held a list of all the villagers, and began reading off names.   
"Nixon?"   
"Here!"   
"Slim?"   
"Here!"   
"Rotor?"   
"Here!"   
"Geofferey?"   
"Here!"   
"Bunnie?"   
"Here!"   
"Tails?"   
"Here!"   
"Sally?"   
---   
"Sally? Is Sally here?"   
There was a long silence. "Great, we've lost Sally." Sonic mumbled. "I don't get it.. She was running right behind me.." Tails looked around puzzled for their lost leader. He didn't notice the shadow creeping up behind him. He walked into the bushes a little way, and heard a twig snap behind him. His head jerked up.. what was that? He begun to turn around, but something grabbed him, swung him, and threw him against a tree. He tried to scream, but a hand was clasped around his mouth. "Deliver a message." the figure ordered. Fearfully, Tails nodded his head. "Tell Sonic that his girlfriend, Princess Sally What's-her-name is in the rocky mountain caves.. if he wants to see her again, he'll come and get her. Got it?" Tails nodded again. "Repeat it." the figure commanded, releasing his hand from the fox's mouth. "Sally.. in the rocky mountain caves.. you want S..Sonic to come and get her.." Tails blurted out. The figure let go completely. "Get outta here, runt." he said. Tails ran without hesitation. "SONIC!!" he yelled. He burst through the clearing, and practically leaped at Sonic. "Whoa, what's the matter, little bro?" he asked. "Someone attacked me!!" Tails cried. Sonic jumped back. "Someone attacked you?? Who? Who was it?" "I.. I don't know!" Tails stammered. "I couldn't see him! But he told me to tell you something!" "Me?" Sonic asked. "Yeah!" Tails replied "He told me to tell you that Sally is in the rocky mountain caves, and he wants you to come and get her!" "Huh?" Sonic asked. "That's a strange thing to say.. ah well, I'm getting to the bottom of this." He turned to the rest of the villagers. "FREEDOM FIGHTERS! I'm going to leave you for a while. Bunnie, you are leader unil Sally and I get back, ok?" Bunny smiled and nodded, as Sonic ran off. "Okay, mah Freedom Fighter deahs!" she shouted. "Let's get ah little more ah this travellin' done before lunchtahm, ahkay?" Streak the Cat scratched his head. "What'd she say?" 

CHAPTER THREE: 

Mecha Sonic flew over the trees.. little did he know he was being watched. 

"Victim number one.." the figure muttered to himself. He lifted the weapon that he had ripped from the arm of the E-101 droid, and pointed it in the direction of the robot above him. Mecha flew in a straight line, concentrating on his flight path to the rocky mountains. He wondered who would want to kidnap Vlad.. the bat was an imbecile to say the least. He wouldn't exactly be worth a king's ransom, and what other reason would there be to kidnap a Robotropolean, if not for money? He didn't have much time to ponder this, because there was a gunshot from somewhere on the ground, and his rocket began to malfunction. There was another gunshot, and an explosion on his back, and he began to spiral towards the ground. He didn't have time to pinpoint where the attack was coming from, before he hit a tree, tumbled through the branches, fell through the foliage and hit the forest floor with a crash. He tried to get up, but something was malfunctioning. A figure approached him. "That'll teach you to knock me off a cliff." he said. Mecha looked up at the black-armoured figure standing above him, trying to work out the bizarre statement. Suddenly it hit him. "Cyber Sonic?" he asked. The figure chuckled. "No, Mecha, not any more." he replied. "Call me Zero. Zero Tolerance. Because that is exactly what I have for the likes of you." With that, Zero lifted the weapon and blasted Mecha again. 

"Did you hear that?" asked Sally. "It sounded like a gun blast.. what is Cyber doing? He better not be attacking the Freedom Fighters.." "These ropes are itchy!" Vlad replied. "The Freedom Fighters are so helpless.." Sally muttered. Vlad simply began squirming around. "What are you doing?" Sally asked. "Getting out of these ropes." came the reply. "They're uncomfortable." Sally was almost blown away. "YOU COULD GET OUT OF THEM ALL ALONG??" she shreiked. "Why didn't you do it before?" Vlad, dropping the ropes, shrugged. "They only started itching me just now! I didn't mind them before." Sally sighed deeply. "Well, untie me, will you?" Vlad looked at her, and shook his head. "Why not?" Sally demanded. "Because you're a Freedom Fighter!" came the reply. "What's wrong with that?" Vlad opened his mouth to answer, stopped to think, looked at her, and shrugged. "Jeez, you're a nut!" Sally exclaimed, growing impatient. Vlad shook his head. "Vampire bat." he replied. Sally rolled her eyes, and looked out the mouth of the cave again. "Do you want to escape or not?" she asked. "Well, I wouldn't mind getting back home.." Vlad replied. "Fine! Okay, now we're getting somewhere!" Sally said. "If you let me out of these ropes, I can get you home!" Vlad stared at her for a long time, and finally made his decision. He took the end of her rope, and bit into it with his sharp fangs. The rope cut through, and fell away from Sally. Sally grinned and grabbed Vlad's arm. "Come on, we gotta get out of these mountains!" 

Sonic trudged through the forest, a thousand questions running through his mind. First of all and foremost, who had kidnapped Sally? Was it Mecha Sonic? And why would she be taken to the Rocky Mountain Caves? He remembered the last time he had been to the Rocky Mountains, when Mecha had gone insane and hit the mountain with a rocket, which ended up as his downfall. He spotted something on the path ahead. What was it? A jumbled pile of metal.. but what was it doing out here? Sonic ran towards it, but instantly hit the brakes when he recognised it. It was Mecha Sonic.. or at least what was left of him. When he regained his bravery, Sonic slowly crept up to the remains. "Robots don't sleep." he said to himself. He poked the robot with a long stick. It didn't move. Now he was even more confused.. whoever killed Mecha was NOT working for Robotnik, or at least not loyally. Tearing himself away from the grisly sight, Sonic walked on ahead. "Do you like what you see, Hedgehog?" came a voice.   
Sonic stopped dead and turned around. Mecha's eyes were now red, glowing dimly. "You're alive?" Sonic stammered. "Barely." Mecha replied. "As much as I loathe saying it, you have nothing to fear, I am hardly in any condition to do you harm." In reply, Sonic hesitantly approached the robot. "Where are you headed, nemesis?" the robot asked curiously. "I'm on a rescue mission, not that it's any of YOUR business." Mecha's eyes glowed slightly brighter, the only part of his body with signs of life. "In the Rocky Mountains?" he asked. Sonic stood speechless, but eventually nodded 'yes'. "Do not bother yourself." Mecha replied. "It is a trap." "A trap?" Sonic repeated. "YES, FOOL!" Mecha growled. "How do you think I got in this situation? I was fooled into going to the mountains, as you were, and I was destroyed as a result of my being so naive." Sonic nodded. "Well... thanks, I guess.. uh, nemesis.... I wish there was something I could do for you." "Oh, but there IS.." Mecha hissed. "I know what is wrong with my systems, and it could easily be remedied by the likes of..." "Wait, wait." Sonic stopped him. "How do I know that you're not just going to jump up and kill me the instant I fix you?" Mecha chucked a very robotic chuckle. "I never said I wasn't!" he sneered "But you inquired about something you could do for me." Sonic stared at the robot for a long time. "How about we strike a deal?" he asked. "A deal?" Mecha asked. "Between you and I? I can hardly see it happening.. but I suppose there is no harm in you telling what's on your mind.." Sonic sighed. "This guy, whoever he is, is pretty powerful, right?" he asked. "Zero." came the reply. "He calls himself Zero, and yes, he was powerful and sly enough to out-do me." "Okay, and this 'Zero' has something we both want, right?" "Correct, but not as much that I want him as Robotnik does." Mecha corrected. "Well, seeing as the common enemy is Zero, we both need something from him, we can't defeat him on our own, and we have no reason to fight each other at the moment..." "...You fix me and I help you defeat Zero." Mecha interrupted, finishing the sentence. "Uh.. yeah." replied Sonic. "Save your strength." Mecha said. "I could never work with you, Ssssonic." "We have before." Sonic said. "Remember when we were lost in the Icecap together?" "We agreed to hold no memory of that event." Mecha replied, glumly, and after a while, he added quietly "Cyber Sonic always seems to bring us together." "Pardon me?" Sonic asked, unaware that Zero was the reincarnation of Cyber. "Never mind, it is none of your concern." Mecha stated. "However, I have come to a decision.. I will agree to your proposition. We shall forget our differences while Zero is at large." Sonic grinned. "Thankyou." "ONE condition I will add, however, hedgehog." Mecha added. "Once I hold in my posession what Zero has stolen, I no longer have use for you. Therefore, the deal ends then and there. And when the deal is over, you will have TWO dangerous enemies to worry about, for I will be just as opposed to you as Zero is." Sonic nodded. "Agreed." "Very well, so be it. Here is what you must do to fix me, Hedgehog, listen closely......." 

Zero, formerly known as Cyber, stepped back into the cave. "One is down, one to go." he declared. "I have come to execute the insane vampire bat to make life a lot easier for everybody." He looked around the cave in silence. He switched on his 'third eye' headlight, and scanned the cave. Nothing was left except ropes. He chuckled. "Oh REALLY?" he asked. "Ya THINK SO? You can just get away from me, just like that? Not that easy, I'm afraid." He loaded his gun and stepped outside the cave. "Time for some target practice.." 

"Where are we?" asked Vlad, inquisitively. "Far from the mountains, that's what counts." Sally replied. "Yeah, that's what counts!" Vlad repeated, knowledgeably. There was a sound in the bushes behind them. Sally jerked around. "Who's there..?" she demanded. A figure stepped out of the scrub.   
"It's him, watch out!" Sally warned.   
"GAH!" the figure boomed..   
Sally and Vlad backed off   
"....customers!"   
Sally and Vlad fell over.   
"Who are you?" Sally asked, regaining her composure.   
The figure became visible, and the squirrel and bat discovered that it wasn't the person they had feared... rather a tattered purple weasil with a belt and several sacks. "Just a wandering entrepreneur.." the stranger replied. "You can call me Nack, as a friend." Sally was puzzled at the grinning weasil. "Uh, okay.. Nack.. I'm Sally, and this is... this is.. this.." She looked around, but she couldn't spot her companion anywhere. Nack looked to the right, and saw Vlad in the bushes filling his mouth with bugs. "Uhm.... that.. that's Vlad." Sally stammered, trying to work out the bat's behavior. "I'm hungry..!" Vlad muttered. Nack grinned and walked over to Vlad. "What's the time?" he asked. Vlad looked at him strangely and shrugged. "EXACTLY!" Nack shreiked, pulling a sack off his belt and opening the string. "You shouldn't ever have to worry about not knowing the time again! That's why I have this deluxe assortment of wristwatches!" Vlad stared into the bag hypnotically. "Oooh, pretty!" he commented, digging into his own pocket. "Twenty-four carat gold! And only twenty bucks apiece!" Nack announced. "I'm sorry Nack, but we aren't interested in buying anything, can we go on our way?" Sally asked, impatiently. Nack walked over to her and put his arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry my dear, I have things for you, too!" he said, pulling another sack off his belt. "Bracelets, diamonds, gem-studded earrings.. Anything that strikes the lady's interests.." "No, I'm sorry!" Sally replied hastilly. "You drive a hard bargain!" Nack said. He replaced the small sacks, and pulled another one off his belt. "These are my deluxe goods." he said. "My ace card, if you will.." he opened the bag, and multicoloured light immediately began to stream from it. He reached in and pulled out something from inside.. a medium sized mouve gem." "Wait a second.." Sally began. "Isn't that a.." "A Chaos Emerald!" Nack interrupted. "Yes, a Chaos Emerald, and it's not the only one... I have all seven colours, they're all extremely powerful, and I'll let them go for only a thousand bucks a pop!" Sally frowned "Look sir, I don't know where you got the Chaos Emeralds from, but..." "Here you go, mister!" Vlad interrupted. Nack turned around, and saw Vlad's arm out, offering him a five cent coin, two buttons and a hairball. "It's all I have.." Vlad admitted. "Awww... you people don't have any money at all!" Nack whined. "I'm wasting my time!" "Yes, you are!" Sally agreed. "You idiots can't buy my stuff.. aww!" Nack whined again. Vlad slapped the weasil upside the head. "I ain't no idiot!" he said. "No.. wait, maybe I am... No, no, I'm an imbecile, not an idiot, I remember.. hehe.." Sally slapped her forehead. "Hey!" Nack growled. "Don't make me call my friend Larry onto you!" "There are two of you?" Sally asked. "Yep!" replied Nack, pulling a pistol out of his belt and polishing the shaft. "Larry Leadspitter, my partner.." Sally frowned and raised an eyebrow. "You call your gun 'Larry'?" she asked. Nack looked back at her. "Gun? Where's a gun? Can you see one, Larry?" Sally collapsed. "GAH!" she yelled. "Another nutcase! Geez! What is this, a full moon or something??" 

There was a sound in the bushes. All three turned to face it. A dark figure emerged.. wearing black metal armour. The three bright eyes on the helmet glaring. "It's him!" Sally choked. "You thought you could escape from me." Zero said. "That makes me angry.. very angry." Nack the Weasil walked up to him. "Hey there, tall dark and rich-looking!" he said. "Your armour is awfully dull and black, wouldn't you much rather dazzle your enemies with glittering jewels studded all over your metal attire?" Zero replied by loading his weapon and aiming at Nack's head. "No." he stated. Nack put his hands up in defeat and stumbled backwards. "Now, are you going to see things MY way?" Zero asked. "You are both expendible, I could kill you if you force me to.. I just don't want to have to bother going out and getting new hostages!" He stared at Vlad. "You are no longer needed, bat, you can go to hell.. and YOU.." he said, glancing at Nack, "I don't know WHO the hell YOU are, but you can just go join him!" As he loaded his weapon, Sally glanced over at the dumfounded Nack, gun around the back of his belt, out of Zero's view. Why wasn't the weasil using it? "Give me that!" Sally demanded, snatching the gun and pointing it towards Zero. The armoured hedgehog was so surprised, not knowing they had a weapon, that he couldn't react before Sally pumped seventeen bullets into his chest. The armour being mildly bulletproof, they didn't get past the metal, but the attack served to knock him head-over-heels, and to let Sally, Nack and Vlad escape. 

Mecha Sonic stood upright, and looked about himself. Everything seemed in working order. "I thought you said it would be EASY to fix!" Sonic exclaimed, exhasperated. Mecha side-eyed him. "Silence hedgehog.. your incompetance served to lengthen the repair process." "You didn't tell me you were going to go offline when I disconnected the yellow wire!" Sonic protested. "I quite nearly killed you trying to figure out how to bring you back!" "..And when I came back on, my eyes were green." Mecha continued. "And you got up and walked backward into a tree!" Sonic added, grinning. Mecha's eyes dimmed, and let out a sound like a digital chuckle. "Yes.. quite humourous." he stated. "What did you say?" Sonic asked, caught a little off-guard by the surprisingly inhostile response. "We are a little way from the mountains." Mecha pointed out, ignoring the question. "I suggest we practise stealth while approaching.. Zero is expecting us and does have an advantage over us. If we play his little game the way he wants us to, we will fall to our demise." "So, what do you suggest?" Sonic asked. "I am not sure." Mecha replied. "Let us approach the mountains from the side opposite to the caves. He will not be expecting that. I shall ponder further on this matter on the way." 

"NEVER, NEVER, NEVER TOUCH LARRY AGAIN!!" Nack screamed, brandishing his gun at Sally in fury. "He does not like to be touched!! Does not like it at all!" Sally looked back at the weasil strangely. "I saved our lives.. and all you're worried about is me touching your gun." she muttered. "Gun?" Nack asked. "Who's got a gun? Surely you could have used THAT to defend us instead of Larry.." Vlad the Bat suddenly jumped on Nack's back, hissing. Nack screamed, and shot him with 'Larry'. The bullet missed, but it sure scared the willies out of Vlad, who collapsed to the ground. "Aw come on!" the bat whined. "Just a little bite! Do you have any idea how long it has been since I last ate?" He began to count on his fingers, but stopped when he got to three. He tapped the third finger a few times, looked up, and asked "What comes after one?" Sally slapped her forehead. "Oh Lord help us." she muttered. "Are only lunatics breeding?" 

Zero Tolerance looked one way, then the other. He picked bullets out of his chest plate as he did so, and dropped them to the ground. "The hunt is on.." he snarled. "They could have just run.. I would have let them go and searched for new hostages. But they had to go and shoot me, now it's personal." He grinned and chuckled under his helmet. "Time to get me some squirrel, bat and weasil shish kebabs." He walked off. 

"I do not detect movement." Mecha stated. "In fact, I do not detect life of any kind." Sonic looked at him strangely. "Really?" he asked. "Well what does THAT mean?"   
"It means that there are definately no life forms on the mountain."   
"Are you sure?"   
"Affirmative."   
Sonic looked up at the caves. Was this all a prank? If it was, where was Sally? And why would Mecha have been shot? No, something was wrong with this whole picture.   
"Could your radar be giving false readings?" Sonic asked.   
"No."   
"Why not? You were pretty beat-up before.."   
At this, Mecha turned to face his rival. "Do not irritate me." he stated bluntly. "You must have trust, or else we are both as good as dead. When I say my sensors are working, MY SENSORS ARE WORKING, and that is the end of it. Do you understand me, Hedgehog?" Slightly fearing Mecha's tone of voice, Sonic nodded slowly. "Where could they be?" he asked. "I do not know." Mecha replied. "Zero could have shifted his hostages to lower ground and not have informed us, but it is unlikely. His sole purpose of capturing them requires him to be very sure we know where he is at all times. No.. something must have happened beyond his control to drive him from the Rocky Mountains and into the forest." "How do we find them?" Sonic asked. "Chances of loocating target are one to one hundred. Odds similar to locating a small object such as a needle in a large haystack. No, we will just have to wait for him to find us. He will come. His plan requires it." 

CHAPTER FOUR: 

"Look." Nack said. "I don't even know why I'm here. I have places to go, people to swindle... I'll just be on my way." Sally turned to him. "We need your gun." she said. Nack raised an eyebrow. "I don't sell guns." he replied.   
"No, we need..." she hesitated "..We need 'Larry'"   
Nack jumped back protectively. "NO WAY!" he yelled. "Wherever I go, Larry goes, I'm heading to the city, so Larry is heading to the city." "It's our only defence!" Sally shot back. "You're the only one here with a weapon, and you saw that lunatic back there! We can't survive for long without protection of some kind.." "Well, you're not using Larry." Nack replied "And that's it." he reached around his belt to get his 'friend' out of its holster, but he could not feel the handle. Turning around, he ound Vlad holding the gun. "Nice.." Vlad commented. "HEY GIVE HIM BACK!!" Nack demanded. "Okay!" Vlad replied, throwing it back to the weasil. But he aimed the throw badly, and it went whizzing like a boomarang in an 'L' shape, and landed in the bushes. Nack and Sally pounced on it at the same time, and spent five minutes trying to wrestle it away from each other. Vlad simply stood there onlooking, scratching his head, until Sally emerged victoriously. One of Nack's sacks had come open, and Nack traced his hands along the ground, collecting jewelry. Sally admired the sleek weapon.. The word 'Larry' was engraved on the barrel. This weasil really was eccentric. Nack latched the bag back onto his belt. "Alrighty." he surrendered "You can carry Larry for a while, but I'm staying with you to make sure you don't hurt him!" "Fine." Sally replied "Just don't get in our way." Vlad, confused, looked at the scene before him. "Who's Larry?" he questioned, puzzled. 

"Why are we doing this, anyway?" Sonic asked, pulling himself onto a ledge. "To acheive an advantage over Zero." Mecha replied. "His plan was to lure us to the mountains and attack us once there.. we are using the exact same plan against him." Sonic grunted as he hiked across the rocks. He briefly wondered why he was needed at all. Firstly, nobody had a bigger head than Mecha when it came to overpowering his foes, and secondly, so far Mecha had been calling all the shots and Sonic had been acting like a sidekick. Perhaps Mecha simply enjoyed having somebody to control? After being a servant all this time, maybe he wanted to be the boss for once. Whatever the reason, Sonic was nervous as to when the robot would want to dispose of his worst enemy. There were plenty of oppertunities on this mountain.. then again, Mecha had said that they must trust each other. Maybe he SHOULD trust the robot... 

Sally stumbled through the forest. "I've got to find the Freedom Fighters.." she said to herself. As she jumped off a rock, a hand swiped at the gun in her hand and missed. "Have either of you seen the Freedom Fighters wandering through here?" The hand swiped again and missed. "No, never seen 'em." Nack replied, standing unusually close to Sally, eyeing the weapon. Sally was muttering to herself, swinging the gun around. Nack swipped, missed, swiped again, missed, leaped, Sally stumbled, Nack flew into a rock. "OUCH!" he exclaimed. "What ARE you doing?" Sally asked him. Nack stood up, and looked around with shifty eyes. "I tripped." he replied. Sally looked skeptical, but she continued on her way. Vlad trailed behind her, eating bugs. "Need salt." the bat commented. Nack the Weasil dropped back a bit, and pulled a sack off his belt. Opening it revealed a collection of random jewelry. He sneaked up to Sally. "Here!" he shouted. "Pretty yourself up!" he threw the sack at her, which exploded over her head. Without time to dodge, she squealed when jewels and earrings and bracelets dropped all over her. In the confusion, Nack rammed into her and took his gun back. "Thanks very much!" he chuckled. "As if I would EVER let you hold Larry! I bid you good-day!" with that, he spun around, and ran into the bushes. "JERK!" Sally screamed after him. "What happened?" Vlad asked unattentively. "That jerk stole the gun back!" Sally complained. "Now we have nothing!" Vlad grinned, and puffed his chest out. "I'll get it back!" he yelled heroically. "No, don't worry." Sally sighed. Vlad spread his wings and flew into the bushes. "I SAID DON'T..." Sally called "Oh, what's the use?" She sat down on a rock. "I'll just wait, I suppose." She didn't notice that she was being watched, until the voice piped up.   
"How convenient." it said.   
Sally shot up, and looked around. She had recognised the voice instantly. Not being able to tell where it came from, she spun around and ran as fast as her legs could take her. She was halted by a fist to the temple. She dropped to the ground. Zero stepped out triumphantly. "By unique coincidence, you are the only member of your party whom I need!" he stated, picking her up. "Now, back to the mountains.. you won't get away so easily this time." 

"Halt." Mecha commanded. Sonic stopped in his tracks. "There he is." Mecha said. Sonic looked off the cliff, and, sure enough, saw somebody clad completely in black carrying Sally, who was barely concious. "That's Zero?" Sonic asked. "Affirmative." Mecha replied. "You have served your purpose, Hedgehog, I will take it from here." Sonic looked at the robot strangely, as if to say 'what purpose?', but decided to keep quiet. Mecha's engines fired. 

"I hope that fool Sonic hasn't been led too astray by your escapades in the forest, squirrel." Zero commented. "Sonic is smart." Sally replied. "He won't fall for any of this." Zero chuckled. "Why not?" he asked. "Computers are super-intelligent, but MECHA SONIC fell STRAIGHT INTO my trap!" As if responding to his name, the exact robot mentioned in the previous sentence smacked into Zero, slamming him hard into the wall, and causing him to release Sally, who fled and his behind a rock.   
"Why Mecha!" Zero exclaimed. "You're alive!"   
"Indeed, fool." Mecha scowled.   
"Good for you!" Zero commented, throwing his attacker off, and tackling him. The two rolled around, and Zero slammed Mecha into the opposite wall.   
"Looks like I get to kill you again!" he said, grinning.   
"I would not bet on that." Mecha replied.   
Mecha blasted into the sky, tugging Zero with him. He spun around, and threw Zero hard onto the rocky ground. Zero hit with a crash, but practically bounced onto his feet. Before he could pull out his weapon, Mecha already had his own on the ready, and fired a few shots. One of them hit Zero, who flew into another wall. Mecha blasted right towards him, and rammed into him hard. Pinning him once again, Mecha pulled out his weapon and fired five shots into the cliff face. He pulled Zero away, and slammed him into the opposite wall, firing another five shots into the rock. "What are you doing, Mecha?" Zero asked, dazed. "Don't tell me your aim is THAT bad!" "Not at all." Mecha replied. He was answered by a deep rumble in the mountains above him. "These mountains are very unstable." he commented. "Avalanches are a common occurence. He fired more shots into the rock, causing the rumble to grow.   
"Consider you terminated for the second time, Cyber Sonic." With that, he threw the struggling Zero into the opposite wall, the impact causing at least three tonnes of rock to fall on top of the black clad hedgehog. Everything fell silent.   
"Mecha Sonic signing off." 

Sonic witnessed the entire fight, and was now standing before the pile of rocks. "Is.. is he.." "Eradicated, yes." Mecha interrupted. "Oh.." Sonic muttered. Sally came out of nowhere and walked up to the hedgehog. "Sonic!" she exclaimed. "I knew you would come!" Sonic chuckled. "Yeah, reliable old Sonic!" he replied. "Are you hurt?" "I'm fine." Sally replied. She shifted her eyes toward the robotic Mecha Sonic, who was taking one last look at where Zero lay, gone from the world. "He's... he's with us on this one." Sonic replied. "Although.. now that Zero is gone, I don't know how long he'll be nice for.."   
"You need not worry, Hedgehog." Mecha said. "I said that I would be allied with you until the time that I retreive what Zero stole from Robotropolis, and I will keep that promise. You may go home if you wish, or you may tag along.." "I'm coming with you." Sonic stated. "If it weren't or you, Mecha, I... I can't believe I'm saying this, but you really saved the day." "And you allowed me to get away from that guy!" Sally interrupted. "I'll help you, too, it's the least I can do." Mecha stared at the two for a while, attempting to comprehend the situation. Finally, he said "I did not do any of this with either of you in mind. I merely did it all entirely for personal gain." He said this as if his greed was a good thing. "We'll help you." Sonic said. "What was it Zero stole?" Mecha nodded. "Very well." he agreed. "I search for a vampire bat. One of Robotnik's employees. Once I find him I can be on my way." 

EPILOGUE: 

Vlad wandered hopelessly through the forest. He had completely lost sight of Nack within half a minute, and was now completely lost. "Let's see.." he muttered "I heard noises that way.." he looked in the direction of the mountains. "Maybe that's where I should go... aw, but that place is bad.." 

The three hiked through the mountains, looking out for the bat that Mecha lost. "Wait a second.." Sally muttered. "Hey, I know the guy we're looking for!" Mecha and Sonic turned to face her. "Is his name Vlad?" she asked. "Indeed, it is." Mecha replied. "He helped me escape Zero!" Sally replied. "I was captured again, but he wasn't! He must be still in the forest!" "The forest?" Mecha asked. "Then we are wasting our time in the mountains." "Wait.." Sonic said. "I thought you said that you SCANNED the mountain, and there was nobody here.." Mecha ignored him. "Your scanners WERE malfunctioning, weren't they!" The robot turned to reply, but he was interrupted by a gunshot to the head which sent him tumbling. At the same time, Sally was grabbed on the leg by an arm reaching from the side of the cliff below them. She was pulled off, screaming. Sonic raced over and looked off the ledge, and saw Zero! He was hanging by one arm off the cliff, holding Sally with the other, and grinning maliciously. He had no helmet, and Sonic saw for the first time the real face of Zero. A maniacal looking pitch black hedgehog, who's grin chilled Sonic's spine. "Greetings, SONIC!" Zero scowled. "Looks like it's CHECKMATE! You didn't expect me to come back, did you! Ha!" Sally hung onto Zero's arm for dear life, as it was the only thing between her and a three hundred metre drop onto hard ground. She screamed, and tried to climb onto the ledge again. But it was futile. "LET HER GO YOU MANIAC!" Sonic demanded. "I could.." Zero replied. "OR, I could NOT!" He shook his hostage a little, letting her drop several inches. "What do you expect me to do?" Sonic asked. Zero simply chuckled. "In the words of a highly acclaimed television villain.." he chuckled "I expect you to DIE, Mr. Bond!" Shaking Sally off completely, he pulled a gun and aimed it at Sonic's head. 

Sonic managed to dodge and duck for cover, as the crazy black hedgehog sprayed bullets all over the stone wall, attempting to eliminate him. Sally managed to grab onto Zero's legs as she fell, causing him to let out an 'oof', and he needed to hold on to the cliff face with both hands. The gun he held fell into the chasm below. "GETTOFF!" he yelled, trying to kick the squirrel off. At that time, a figure emerged from the drop, and hovered above the two. "What's happening?" Vlad asked, flapping his wings. Sally immediately climbed up to Zero's waist, grabbed onto Vlad's legs, and let go of the hedgehog alltogether. "Hey! OI!" Vlad shouted, flapping around. "Hey Zero!" Sonic shouted, getting up off the ground. Zero looked towards him long enough to see a rock hurdling towards his head. It slammed into his forehead, and then another rock flew towards him, causing him to release his grip with one hand. "I AM INVINCIBLE!!!" he screamed, a small stream of red blood dripping from below his left ear. "I WILL DESSSSSSSTROYYY YOU SOOOONICCC!!!" "Destroy THIS!" Sonic replied. He kicked Zero square in the jaw, and the black hedgehog released his grip completely, and began falling.. falling.. falling.. the last thing that was heard was the dull thump of a body hitting the ground. 

Sally stood up and brushed herself off. "Well, that was an experience." she muttered. "How's Mecha?" Sonic looked around, but a phaser blast hit the ground in front of his feet, causing him to stumble and almost fall off the cliff himself. He regained his balance, and looked up at the source of the blast. Mecha Sonic and Vlad were flying fairly high above the ground. "That was to remind you that we are enemies." Mecha announced. "Our truce is over, and I would kill you right now if it were not for the fact that I am desperately in need of repairs. Farewell, Sonic, when we meet again, I would advise that you watch your back. I will show no mercy." "Until then, I guess!" Sonic replied, smiling. "Seeya later, rival!" "We will indeed." Mecha replied, grabbing Vlad's arm and flying off. "Now what?" Sonic asked. "We find the Freedom Fighters before it gets dark." Sally replied. "They can't be too far from Stringybark, we might as well head there."   
As the late afternoon sun bared down on them, Sonic and Sally helped each other down the mountains and into the Great Forest once again. "Oh, there's something I should tell you." Sally said. "Mmm?" Sonic asked. "There's a guy in the forest.. a weasil." Sally replied. "And he has the Chaos Emeralds.." "..And a gun named Larry?" Sonic asked. "Yeah, him!" Sally replied. "Nack." Sonic muttered. "Knux and I ran into him a while back. He's a psycho, but he stole the emeralds somehow." "Should we confront him and get them back?" Sally asked. "Maybe sometime." Sonic replied. "But that's not what's important right now." 

*** 

The sun was down. The mountains were silent, except for one figure who sat up, and started to pick his heavy metal-clad body off the rocks. As he did, he spotted a glint of light on the ground. A helmet. His helmet. He picked it up, and put it on his head. He looked around for his gun, but it must have bounced elsewhere. He took his helmet off, wiped a stream of blood out of his eyes, and replaced the head gear. "This is not the end." he said. "I will destroy you both, ESPECIALLY you, Sonic." He began to walk towards the sliver of a sun that began to vanish behond the horizon. "You have won the battle." the figure said. "The war rages on." 

THE END 

SERIES TWO CHRONOLOGY:   
1. The New Girl   
2. Dragon the Chain   
3. Never Say Nemesis   
4. When a Hedgehog Meets a Fox   
5. Just Your Imagination   
6. Shred   
7. The Death Machine   
8. Metal Made Flesh   
9. Power Corrupts   
10. Halfway Across the Galaxy   
11. Two For One   
12. Prologue to an Adventure   
13. Adventure

   [1]: http://www.stas.net/1/shax/Virtualden.html
   [2]: mailto:Shaxr@angelfire.com



End file.
